


All Lights Eventually Fade

by Sam_Nook



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Character Death, Character Study, Family Feels, Stars, Talks of Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-02
Updated: 2020-08-02
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:26:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,039
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25674304
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sam_Nook/pseuds/Sam_Nook
Summary: "Imagine if you were a star, you'd want to shine the brightest right? After all, the only way to light up the sky is to shine bright. Well, to do that, you need to be true to yourself. The more you hide yourself, the less you shine. The more you be you, then, the brighter you shine. I want you to be yourself, Feliciano."
Relationships: North Italy & Rome (Hetalia)
Kudos: 5





	All Lights Eventually Fade

As a child, Feliciano had looked at the night sky for inspiration. They had given him inspiration and something to look up to besides his grandfather. One of his first memories was his grandfather taking him out on summer night to explain to him what the stars were and what they meant.

It seemed that Rome was always giving him life lessons in a poetic way. He often explained things with a story or with a hidden meaning, and it wasn't until he was older than he finally understood what his grandfather had meant.

It was that night when Rome had given him a hidden lesson. Feliciano had asked about the stars, and as the moon rose on the horizon, he followed his grandfather outside. From there, the older male began telling Feliciano all the stories of the stars.

Really, he hadn't paid attention to the stories, but instead, he watched Rome. Rome's brown eyes sparkled, and his smile was gentle and held such love for Feliciano. He decided that Rome was indeed his own night sky. He shined like the stars out in the darkening skies and was just as beautiful.

"You're like a star!" Feliciano couldn't help but blurt out in childish wonder. "No, a whole bunch of stars!"

Rome had laughed and crouched down next to Feliciano to ruffle his brown locks. His eyes had softened, a look reserved for Feliciano and his brother, before he spoke.

"And you, Feli, are a star too." His smile grew even broader, and he placed a kiss on Feliciano's cheek. "A whole bunch of stars."

Feliciano immediately shook his head, his eyes widening at the comment. "No! I'm not like you. You're big; You can do everything! You've traveled further and done more than any nation!"

Rome was silent for a minute, his gaze had returned to the sky, and he took a long moment to stare up at the constellations. When he finally looked back at Feliciano, he spoke.

"Feli, what I've done is what I've done. We're all different. I don't want you to do what I've done. I don't care if you've conquered nations or traveled to China. You don't need to do that to prove yourself." Rome paused as if trying to think out what he was saying. "Imagine if you were a star, you'd want to shine the brightest right? After all, the only way to light up the sky is to shine bright. Well, to do that, you need to be true to yourself. The more you hide yourself, the less you shine. The more you be you, then, the brighter you shine. I want you to be yourself, Feliciano."

It was through that that Feliciano learned to appreciate individuality. He learned to understand how he was too. After all, everyone shined in their own way, right?

It was also nighttime when his grandfather faded. It was centuries after that night he had first learned of the stars. Feliciano knew it was coming. Outsiders invaded Rome, and his grandfather had disappeared into the mountains.

At first, it had hurt when he felt that split. His heart ached, and with the soldiers marching into the city, he did the only thing he that seemed safe. He turned his back on the town and ran. He ran through the night, and when he couldn't see the fires in the distance or hear the yells and screams, he collapsed. He had sobbed for hours, and it was only when the horizon began to lighten that he stopped.

Feliciano curled up, looking up at the stars he felt comforted. The stars twinkled down at him, and he instantly picked on pattern out. It was the one his grandfather called Orion. It shone brightly in the lightening sky, almost as if calling out to him. To Feliciano, it was like a sign. A sign from Rome that it would all be okay.

He had always clung to Orion. It was his favorite constellation, and every night when he saw it shine in the night sky, it always seemed to bring him hope. It kept him from breaking after every heartbreak and every war. It reminded him to be himself and to shine, to be a beacon of light and happiness.

But all stars stop shining at one point in their lives, especially those who burned so bright. It was inevitable. And on this night, Feliciano was reminded of that. It was night, it was always night when important things happened, and the stars displayed once more in the sky for the world to see. The stars were dimmer, but as Feliciano laid on the dying grass below him, he could see them perfectly.

Above him the constellation of Orion watches from the skies, its stars lighting up the night for Feliciano. Hesitantly, he reached out a hand as if to grab the star and pull them down towards him, but his hands only blocked them from view. Feliciano sighed, his breathing quickening when he once again felt that tear in his existence.

It was as if someone had cut the lines to his boat from the dock to let it float away. He was drifting away from Italy. He was no longer Italy. Feliciano knew this day was going to happen, but he had never assumed it would have been so soon.

For a moment, he felt human. He was just Feliciano now. He didn't move; he wanted to be truly human for once only once before he disappeared to join the stars up above.

It was a beautiful feeling to be grounded in something so fleeting.

Tears began to fill his eyes, blurring the stars from view. He was scared of death and how permanent it would be. But even though the tears, he could see one constellation lighting the sky. It was Orion. Once more, his heart was calm, and he exhaled. He had done his job; he had kept his nation safe and thriving. It was up to Lovino now.

And as a boat on the sea sails when a gust of wind gives it wings, he floated away. He glanced up one more time at the sky and closed his eyes.

"Welcome home, Feliciano."


End file.
